A pharmaceutical pig is used for transportation of liquid radiopharmaceuticals. A radiopharmacy typically dispenses a liquid radiopharmaceutical into a syringe, which is then placed in a pharmaceutical pig for transport to a medical facility. The pharmaceutical pig reduces unwanted exposure from the radioactive material and protects the syringe from damage. After delivery, the pharmaceutical pig is opened, the syringe is removed and the radiopharmaceutical is administered to a patient. The used syringe is put back in the pharmaceutical pig and returned to the radiopharmacy for disposal. Some radiopharmacies are independently owned and others are owned and operated in nationwide networks by Cardinal Health, Inc., having a place of business at 7000 Cardinal Place, Dublin, Ohio 43017 and Mallinckrodt Inc., a business of Tyco International, Ltd.
Conventional pharmaceutical pigs are used on a daily basis by radiopharmacies across the country. Many of the conventional pigs in current use are formed from plastic and lead. Of course, the lead is used as shielding material for the radiopharmaceutical. Conventional plastic/lead pharmaceutical pigs are typically configured in a two-part or a three-part design, discussed in greater detail below. Other conventional pharmaceutical pigs are formed from plastic and tungsten. The tungsten is an alternative shielding material to lead, but it is much more expensive.
The pharmaceutical pigs that are currently used with syringes are elongate devices sized to enclose a single syringe that holds a dose for a single patient. Conventional two-part pharmaceutical pigs are available from Biodex Medical Systems, Inc. of Shirley, N.Y. (“Biodex”) and are commonly used in the Mallinckrodt system of radiopharmacies. Conventional three-part pharmaceutical pigs are produced by Cardinal Health, Inc. and are shown in U.S. Pat. No. 5,519,931. These conventional three-part pharmaceutical pigs are believed to be in widespread use in the Cardinal Health, Inc. system of radiopharmacies to transport conventional syringes.
The Biodex two-part pharmaceutical pig is formed from: a) an outer plastic shell having a removable plastic top that threadibly engages a plastic base; and b) an inner shield having an upper lead section that fits in the plastic top and a lower lead section that fits in the plastic base. Conventional syringes are transported in this two-part pharmaceutical pig. However, because of the possibility of contamination, the lower section of the pharmaceutical pig is washed and disinfected after each use in the Mallinckrodt system of radiopharmacies.
There is a three-part pharmaceutical pig disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,519,931, assigned to Syncor International Corp., which is formed from the following components: a) an outer shell having a removable plastic top that threadibly engages a plastic base; b) an inner shield having an upper lead section that fits in the plastic top and a lower lead section that fits in the plastic base; and c) an inner disposable liner having a removable plastic cap that connects to a plastic base. A conventional syringe is contained in the disposable plastic liner, which fits into the lead portion of the pharmaceutical pig. There is also a pharmaceutical pig disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 6,425,174, which is also assigned to Syncor International Corp., that includes an upper shield and a lower shield that nest within an upper outer shell and a lower outer shell, respectively. There is a separate sharps container, having an upper cap and a lower housing, that nests within the upper shield and the lower shield, respectively.
John B. Phillips is listed as the inventor on several patents for a three-part pharmaceutical pig having: a) an outer plastic shell; b) an inner lead shield; and c) a removable inner liner to hold a syringe. The Phillips' patents are as follows: U.S. Pat. No. 5,611,429; U.S. Pat. No. 5,918,443; and U.S. Pat. No. 6,155,420. The removable inner liner in the Phillips' design has a flared hexagonal shaped section sized to surround the finger grip of the syringe and hold it securely in place during transit.
Conventional three-part lead/plastic pharmaceutical pigs, such as the Syncor design or the Phillips design described above, rely on a removable inner liner having a cap and base to contain the syringe and prevent contamination of the lead shielding material with the radiopharmaceutical. However, both the two-part lead/plastic pharmaceutical pig and the three-part lead/plastic pharmaceutical pig have exposed lead on the interior. There is a need for a new design that protects the lead from inadvertent contamination by the liquid radiopharmaceutical. Lead is a very porous material that can absorb the radiopharmaceutical. Moreover, lead, as a material, might be construed as being hygienically challenging.
Many conventional three-part lead/plastic pharmaceutical pigs use a threaded design to connect the cap and the base. Some of these prior art designs require several turns to connect the cap and the base. In a busy radiopharmacy, there is a need for a faster and easier way to attach the cap to the base. However, the cap is typically not locked into place, therefore, rough transportation and a failure to provide the requisite number of turns can result in the cap untwisting slightly from the base during transit with a potential spill of radioactive pharmaceutical fluid resulting therefrom. Another issue is that the base of a conventional pharmaceutical pig is generally cylindrical making the pharmaceutical pig prone to tipping and falling over on its side. The present invention is directed to overcoming one or more of the problems set forth above. These deficiencies and shortcomings include, but are not limited to, exposed lead, numerous turns required to attach the cap to the base, absence of a locking mechanism to secure the cap to the base and a cylindrical base where the bottom portion of the base has substantially the same diameter as the top portion of the base so that the pharmaceutical pig is prone to tipping and falling over on its side.